


bouche pleine de roses

by euphorickiri



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Hanahaki Disease, Unhappy Ending, angst central so true, sort of canon compliant with glaciator
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:47:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26221363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/euphorickiri/pseuds/euphorickiri
Summary: adrien has always had a big heart, despite not having the best relationship with love. he tried his best to be what others wanted him to be, pushing himself past his limits to be perfect.turns out his best wasn't enough.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Chloé Bourgeois, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Plagg, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 4
Kudos: 50





	bouche pleine de roses

Love has always been difficult for Adrien. 

He stopped receiving paternal love at a young age after his mom passed away, though he barely knew what it was like to begin with. His mom was always there for him when she could be. Most of her time was devoted to her work, but Adrien took any form of affection he could get. A quick hug, a pat on the shoulder. Even a smile from across the room was more than enough. As he got older, those moments between them became less frequent. Adrien’s mom constantly apologized, promising that she would make it up to him, but not once did he get mad. He knew she did the best she could. At least she tried harder than his father who barely spared him a glance. A small part of him thought things would change after they lost his mom, but Adrien knew better. He spent the night after his mom’s funeral crying himself to sleep, his father nowhere to be found. 

Somehow Adrien managed to pull himself back together. He found comfort that at least Nathalie cared about him in her own way. It wasn’t paternal love by any means, but it was better than nothing. Unlike his mom who was warm and welcoming, Nathalie was always cold. She could be blunt and was often prone to hurting Adrien’s feelings. There were times where he could tell Nathalie was taking her anger out on him, he never called her out. Better she got mad at him than his father. It was ironic. His father barely acknowledged his existence and yet Adrien still cared about him. He told himself that if he worked hard enough to be a perfect son, maybe his father would show him that same care. 

As he got older, he realized that would never happen. That didn’t stop him from continuing to try. 

Outside of his father and Nathalie, the only other person Adrien talked to was Chloe. They’ve known each other since they were kids and she was his only friend. Chloe knew what it was like to be neglected. Her mom was distant, never staying home for long. Her dad loved her a lot, but being the mayor of Paris took up the majority of his time. Having someone else who understood him was the best feeling in the world. It helped Adrien feel less lonely, knowing that he had at least one person supporting him. He never stopped smiling when he was around her. Chloe’s joy was contagious, and even on Adrien’s worst days she managed to cheer him up. When she said she loved him for the first time, Adrien thought he was dreaming.

“Well we’re friends, aren’t we? And friends love each other,” Chloe said with a bright smile on her face. She said it like it was the simplest thing in the world, her words warming Adrien’s heart. He returned her smile and pulled her into a hug, happy tears flowing down his face. “I love you too.”

When Mrs. Bourgeois left Paris for good, things took a turn for the worst. 

Something inside Chloe snapped and she was never the same. Adrien could barely recognize her. She was angry all the time, yelling at anyone for the smallest things. Adrien ended up taking most of her blows, ignoring how hurt he felt when she said some particularly nasty things. And yet, he never yelled back. Chloe was there for him at his mom’s funeral. She held his hand the entire time, holding back her tears for his sake. Under all of her anger, Adrien knew his friend was still there. So he endured everything. At some point it became too much and his father banned Chloe from their house, leaving Adrien alone once again. He didn’t know what hurt more. The fact that his father pushed him away from his only friend, or watching Chloe walk out the door without putting up a fight, never looking back. They didn’t see each other again until Adrien started public school. Her attitude wasn’t any better and she treated him more like a prize than an actual human being. Hearing Chloe say he loved him now wasn’t the same. Her words weren’t genuine. Nothing about her was. Not anymore. 

Associating with Chloe made the rest of their class wary of him. He almost ruined his chances to make new friends when he was blamed for putting gum on Marinette’s seat - of course, he took the fall instead of saying Chloe did it. He was too nice for his own good - but everything worked out for him in the end. Nino, Marinette, and Alya were the first people to befriend him. The rest of the class followed, though they acted more like acquaintances than actual friends. They greeted him in the halls and sat with him at lunch, but no one else made an effort to become closer. Even if Adrien was going to a regular school, his father’s title loomed over his head. No one ever said it out loud, but he knew what his classmates were thinking.

He would never be one of them, no matter how hard he tried. His life was too different from theirs. 

Nino, Marinette, and Alya didn’t seem to care about his reputation. That should’ve been a relief, but it only made Adrien worry. He didn’t want to lose the friends he just got. They could change their minds about him at any moment and distance themselves away from him just like everyone else. Chloe pushed him away and never looked back. Adrien couldn’t help but think another reason for her doing that was because she got tired of him and hearing about all of his problems. So, he kept to himself. Everyone already knew his father was strict. How could he not be? He was the most famous fashion designer in Paris and his son was his top model. The public perceived his attitude towards Adrien similar to one of an overprotective parent. No one knew about the cold stares or the constant berating. His father only let people see what he wanted them to see, and Adrien did the same. There was a wall between him and everyone else that he would never be able to break no matter how hard he tried. He was seen as the golden boy of Paris. To outsiders, his life was perfect. So what was the point of damaging that image? If keeping it up meant Adrien didn’t lose his friends, so be it. 

Whenever they needed to vent Adrien would sit quietly and listen, trying to help as best as he could. When his friends were down he was the one who cheered them up, pushing down his inner turmoil and plastering a smile on his face. There were days where it was harder for Adrien to keep up the act. No one noticed. At least that’s what he thought until Marinette tried to get him to open up once. 

“Are you sure there isn’t anything on your mind? You’ve been quieter than usual.”

It threw him off. He couldn’t remember the last time someone had actually paid attention to him enough to notice something was wrong. The only person that came to mind was his mom, but even those moments were rare. A weird feeling settled in his chest as Marinette stared at him with a worried expression on her face. Alya and Nino noticed and stopped their conversation, looking at Adrien curiously. He just waved them off.

“I didn’t get a lot of sleep last night, that’s all. You don’t have to worry about me.”

Nino and Alya were satisfied with his response and changed the subject. He sent a smile Marinette’s way to assure her he was alright and turned his attention towards the others, not noticing the concerned gaze aimed at him. He refused to let his guard down until he got home, allowing himself to break down in the safety of his bedroom. He felt just as trapped as he did before. The one place that was supposed to be Adrien’s safe haven was taken away before he could blink. From the way he was seeing things, there was nothing else he could do. All the days begging his father to let him go to an actual school were wasted. The thought of going back to being home-schooled crossed his mind more times than he wanted to admit. Keeping up the act of being happy at school was mentally draining. At home he could express his emotions freely, hidden away from prying eyes. 

_ Are you sure there isn’t anything on your mind? You’ve been quieter than usual _

But how could he go back to homeschooling after that?

Marinette’s words played on repeat in his head. She just asked two simple questions. They weren’t anything extraordinary. But to Adrien, it felt like his world was knocked off his axis just from those words. His gaze wandered towards Marinette unconsciously, still in a state of disbelief. She was the only person who noticed something was wrong. She  _ cared _ . He found himself hanging around her more often. Compared to Alya and Nino, she wasn’t as talkative. She tended to stutter over her words and was extremely clumsy, tripping over her own feet more times than Adrien could count. Despite that, Marinette was graceful in her own ways. She was one of the most talented bakers he knew. Whenever she brought baked goods to class she shared them with everyone with a bright smile on her face as she talked about new recipes she was trying out. Those were the rare moments where she didn’t stutter at all. Adrien noticed how his classmates gravitated towards her, even Chloe who pretended not to be interested. Marinette immediately grew flustered when she realized the whole class was surrounding her, smiling shyly while their classmates showered her with compliments. 

The weird feeling Adrien felt in his chest before came back as he watched them, his throat itching. 

Something about her made Adrien want to let her guard down. When she questioned him, he wanted to pour his heart out to her. To stop hiding away and finally tell the truth. His fear of losing his friends held him back, but the urge to open up again never went away. There was still something missing. One final push Adrien needed to convince himself that maybe he had it all wrong.

He didn’t expect becoming Chat Noir was the answer he was looking for. 

It was a different type of freedom, one that he thrived on. He was the best version of himself when he was Chat Noir. Being a hero was a reward within itself. The love from the people of Paris was overwhelming and he couldn’t get enough of it. People finally saw him as someone other than Gabriel Agreste’s son. No matter how rough the start of his days were, the ring on his finger was a reminder that he had an escape. Having Plagg around was great too. The kwami could be too much to deal with at certain times, especially when he started whining about wanting more camembert cheese when he didn’t need it, but he cared deeply about Adrien and never left his side. Plagg never pried. He knew how Mr. Agreste acted towards his son along with Nathalie. On the really bad days he rested on Adrien’s shoulder, staying silent while the teen cried. He would circle back to being his snarky self afterward, never bringing those moments up again.

Plagg was his kwami. Out of everyone, Adrien thought he would be able to open up to him. He was the only one who knew the truth about everything. Several attempts were made, but nothing changed. The logical part of him knew Plagg cared. The bond between kwamis and their miraculous holders was too strong to break. Adrien  _ knew  _ that. But his fear wouldn’t leave him no matter how hard he tried. He started to doubt himself, his once carefree attitude about being a hero turning into uneasiness. Losing Plagg meant losing Chat Noir. What if telling the truth made the kwami realize he was the wrong person for the job? He’s already seen Adrien at his worst. Did Plagg already think less of him? How long until the people of Paris started to think the same way? What if-

_ Chat Noir and I, we’re an unstoppable team  _

Right, he wasn’t alone. He was  _ needed _ . Maybe he didn’t believe in himself, but Ladybug did, and that was enough. 

Falling in love with his partner-in-crime didn’t come as a surprise. He knew he was doomed after they took down Stormheart together. It was the first time they met and she still put her complete trust in him. They fought together like they’ve known each other for years, their teamwork close to perfection. And when Ladybug made a promise to the people of Paris that they would protect them, she smiled at him with admiration shining in her eyes, and all he could do was fall. He fell harder with each passing day, finding even more reasons why he loved the heroine so much. She never returned his advances, always rolling her eyes fondly and telling Adrien to focus. It deterred him getting rejected over and over again, but he never stopped. Even if Ladybug was quick to shut him down, sometimes she would stop herself, watching him with an unreadable expression on her face. There were also the rare moments she grew flustered, yelling when he teased her for it. It gave him hope that one day she would fall from him, just as he did for her.

Until that day, he was glad to have her as a friend. 

“Not that I’m complaining, but you haven’t said a single thing since we started our patrol,” Ladybug remarked. “Something on your mind?”

There weren’t any akumas tonight, which was rare. They decided to go out and scout the city just in case something popped up. 

“We’re not supposed to tell each other anything about our personal lives, remember? Secret identities and all that?” Adrien muttered. 

Ladybug frowned and grabbed his arm, turning him around to face her. “Then don’t tell me the specifics. I’ve never seen you act like this before. I want to help you, if you’ll let me. I care about you. So please, what’s wrong?”

He pulled his arm out of her grip and sat down on the rooftop they were on, pulling his knees into his chest. Ladybug mirrored him, their shoulders brushing from how close they were. 

“This may come as a surprise to you, but I’m not as bold as I am with you on a daily basis,” he admitted. “I have a hard time opening up to people. The one time I did it ended badly and I can’t go through something like that again.” 

Ladybug stayed silent, allowing him to gather his thoughts. “I’ve always kept myself a safe distance away from people to avoid any problems. I always thought that’s what was best. But for the first time in a long time, someone saw me. They  _ actually  _ saw me. And I want to tell them everything. I’ve tried, but I keep chickening out. I don’t know if I’ll ever stop being scared of being honest. People always say ‘the truth shall set you free’ or whatever, but all the truth has done for me is make my life harder. I’m sick of lying all the time. I want to be able to say how I feel and be honest.”

His throat felt tight and he coughed, his eyes tearing up from the force of it. Ladybug rubbed his back silently, moving closer towards him. Adrien collected himself and took a shaky breath, looking up at the stars. 

“But if telling the truth only makes things worse again, is it really worth it?” 

A scream sounded in the distance, catching their attention. They immediately got on their feet and looked around, their eyes landing on a tall figure near the eiffel tower. 

“Gigantitan  _ again _ ? This is the third time this week,” Adrien groaned, taking out his staff. “Let’s get this over with.” 

He started running, stopping when he realized Ladybug hadn't moved. “Hey, we have to go. If this is about what I said we can just-”

“You can’t keep running away.” 

Ladybug walked up to him, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him. Adrien was at a loss for words. “I know you’re scared, and I understand why. But how long can you keep going on like this? Keeping your true feelings bottled up all the time? This person you mentioned seems like someone you can trust, so go to them. Be honest. Be  _ brave _ . Okay?” 

He nodded, unable to find anything to say. Ladybug smiled and squeezed his shoulders before letting go and holding onto his hand instead, pulling him along. “Good. Now let’s go stop the akuma.” 

That was it. The final push. 

Adrien paced around his room, his eyes darting to his clock to check how much time he had left before school started. Plagg was lounging on his bed, stuffing his face with a piece of camembert cheese Adrien tried to hide from him. 

“You’re going to put a hole in the floor if you keep pacing like that,” the kwami noted. 

The teen didn’t bother to look his way. “Please, for  _ once _ , keep your sarcastic comments to yourself. I’m not in the mood.”

Plagg finished off the cheese and flew in front of Adrien, bumping his head against the teen’s forehead gently. 

“You’re overthinking. Whatever you need to do, just do it. It’ll be okay.” 

Leave it to Plagg to calm him down without knowing all the details. Adrien smiled slightly, giving the kwami another piece of cheese in thanks. The ride to school felt especially long today which didn’t help his nerves at all. He bolted out of the car as soon as they reached school grounds and ran up to class, standing in front of the door. It was still early so the building was relatively empty. He could hear Marinette and Alya on the other side of the door, their laughter echoing across the empty halls. Adrien gulped nervously, grabbing the door handle tightly. His heart was pounding and he grabbed his chest with his free hand, trying to calm himself down. He could do this. When his friends were upset he always lent an ear, being a shoulder for them to lean on. He could trust them. He could trust Marinette, who was the first to show concern. She wouldn’t turn him away, he knew she wouldn’t. 

_Be_ _brave_

Adrien took a deep breath and opened the door. He was startled when he saw Chloe sitting in the front of the classroom, mindlessly scrolling through her phone. She looked up at the sound of the door opening, smirking when she locked eyes with him. Before either of them could say anything, Alya mentioned his name unexpectedly. The other teens didn’t notice his presence yet, wrapped up in their own conversation.

“Sooooo how are things going with Adrien?” Alya asked, leaning back in her seat.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Marinette replied, her red face contradicting her statement. 

Her friend gave her a look of disbelief. “Seriously? This coming from the president of the Adrien Agreste fan club?”

“That’s not true!”

“Tell that to the posters and magazines you have all over your room.” 

Adrien’s breath hitched. Chloe looked like she won the lottery, the smirk on her face growing. 

“Shut up!” Marinette demanded, shoving Alya who was laughing as her face turned a darker shade of red. “The only reason I have all that stuff is because he’s a model for his father’s clothing line. You know how much I want to be a fashion designer and Gabriel Agreste is the best there is! I just admire his work, that’s all. It has nothing to do with Adrien!”

Oh.  _ Oh _ .

It was never about him. How could he be so stupid?

“Using Adrien to get to his father huh? I have to admit, I admire your networking skills,” Chloe said, giggling at the panicked expressions her classmates were sporting. “Never expected Marinette to resort to such drastic tactics.”

“When the hell did you even get here?” Alya snapped. 

Chloe rolled her eyes. “Only a couple of minutes after you. Maybe if you airheads paid attention to your surroundings, this could’ve been avoided.”

They started to argue, throwing jabs at each other back and forth. Adrien ignored them and kept his eyes on Marinette, clenching his hands into fists to hide how much they were shaking. She got up and walked towards him, her face riddled with guilt. 

“Adrien-”

“Is that why you wanted to be friends with me? So you could meet my father?” he asked, his voice trembling.

Marinette wrung her hands nervously. “I know what I said sounds bad, but I-”

“Please just tell me the truth.”

Chloe and Alya were still arguing, their voices getting louder. The tension in the room was suffocating, only growing stronger as their conversation continued. Tears formed in Marinette’s eyes and she looked down at the ground, hugging herself tightly. 

“I did hope that maybe one day you could introduce me to him. Not anytime soon though, I swear. And it honestly never crossed my mind until recently-”

He didn’t need to hear more.

Adrien ran out of the room, ignoring Marinette calling his name. He bumped into Nino on his way out of the school but he refused to stop moving, not even hearing the other teen ask if he was okay. There was no destination he had in mind. His mind was a jumbled mess, and all he wanted to do was get as far away from the school as possible. Adrien doesn’t know how long he ran. His legs started to burn because of the overexertion but he kept going. Eventually he had to stop and ended up collapsing on the ground in the middle of a neighborhood he didn’t recognize. 

He curled up into a ball and cried, not caring if anyone saw him. Just when he finally found the courage to open up his heart again, things took a turn for the worse. He really,  _ genuinely  _ believed Marinette cared about him. She made him feel safe enough to start taking down his walls, only for her to turn around and force him to build them back up again. He should’ve figured it out. Most of the class already treated him like he was some untouchable figure, what made Marinette any different? They started off on the wrong foot when they met. What if she wasn’t over it? He cleared his name but continued to associate himself with Chloe, someone who tormented her, even if the other girl didn’t give him much of a choice on that matter. 

She never saw him as a friend. In her eyes, he was only a stepping stone to launch herself into the world of fashion. 

Whatever hope he had of making a true friend was officially gone.

Adrien gasped, coughing at the sudden tightness in his throat. He clutched his chest with one hand and covered his mouth with the other, struggling to catch his breath as his coughing got worse. Something dropped into his hand when he got his breathing back under control and looked down, his eyes widening in disbelief at the sight of a yellow rose pedal sitting in the palm of his hand. 

Hanahaki disease. Just when he thought things couldn’t get worse. 

The disease was said to be a myth. People coughing up flowers over unrequited feelings? It sounded ridiculous. And yet, Adrien had the evidence to back it up in his hands. He’s been staring at the flower petal ever since he got back home, a bunch of tabs talking about the hanahaki disease still open on his laptop. His phone was blowing up with notifications on the corner of his desk but he left it alone, already knowing who it was. Plagg hovered next to him, reading one of the articles in front of them. 

“This doesn’t sound good,” he said worriedly. “You need to tell someone.”

Adrien scoffed. “Who? My  _ father _ ? He’s the last person I want to know about this.”

“Then tell Nathalie. Maybe she-”

“Whatever I tell her she tells my father. And technically I did tell you, so that counts.”

Plagg flew in front of him, blocking Adrien’s view of the rose petal. “This isn’t a joke. Your life's on the line right now! The only options you have are either to confess your feelings to get the surgery. The color of the flower means friendship, so you have to tell Marinette the truth-”

“Yeah, because that went so fucking well the first time!” Adrien snapped. 

“This isn’t up for debate! The surgery is too risky and if you do go through with it, you’ll lose the feelings you have towards Marinette. And what if something goes wrong? You could turn into some emotionless drone!” Plagg argued. “Confessing is the only option you have.”

“Hell no.”

The kwami went on another rant, widely gesturing to the articles to emphasize his points. Adrien sighed and leaned back in his seat, glaring up at the ceiling. There had to be another way. Talking to Marinette again was something he was nowhere near ready for. He looked back at the rose petal again, pausing when his gaze landed on his ring. An idea started to come to mind and Adrien sat straight up in his seat. 

Nothing ever specified who he had to confess to, right?

“I don’t like that look on your face,” Plagg noted. “What are you thinking about?”

Adrien smiled. “Something crazy.”

He waited until the right moment presented itself.

Plagg was completely against his idea to confess his feelings for Ladybug. Nothing he said convinced the teen to change his mind so he stopped trying, but he was extremely worried. Adrien avoided Marinette like the plague at school, staying as far away from her as he could. He also avoided Nino who was still in the dark on the whole situation. Alya was the only person who was able to catch him one day after school.

“I know what you heard us saying sounded bad, and I’m sorry for hurting you, but I really think you should hear Marinette out. She’s worried about you. We all are.”

He ended up coughing up yellow rose petals for an hour after that conversation. 

Waiting to find time to talk to Ladybug felt like an eternity, the disease getting worse as time went on. Adrien’s chance finally presented itself when Glaciator attacked. When they took him down, he asked the heroine to meet him at the balcony he picked out. He finished setting the decorations up and grabbed the red rose he bought, smiling softly. This was his chance to fix everything. If he couldn’t have his friendship with Marinette, then maybe he could at least be with Ladybug. 

“Listen, I don’t want to play around with your feelings. It would be the same as lying to you. I don’t want to do that.”

“You’re more than a partner Chat Noir, you’re my friend. And I’d never want to lie to a friend.”

“There’s this boy….”

He couldn’t breathe.

The pain he felt in his chest was unimaginable. Vines crawled up his throat, the sharp edges digging into his skin. Adrien smiled through the pain, giving Ladybug the rose and kissing her cheek. 

“I get it Ladybug. Your friendship means everything to me. You can keep the rose, it goes with your costume.” 

The pain became unbearable by the time he got home.

He fell on the ground and detransformed, clawing at his throat and gasping desperately for air. Plagg was saying something but Adrien couldn’t hear him, registering nothing but his pain. He started to vomit, tears streaming down his face as his entire body trembled. The vomiting stopped after a torturous couple of minutes and Adrien fell back, wincing at the pain he still felt in his throat. 

“I  _ told  _ you confessing to Ladybug was a bad idea! Why didn’t you just listen to me??? I swear to god-”

Adrien groaned and sat up, freezing when he saw what was on the floor in front of him.

It was a pile of soil. He vomited up a gigantic pile of  _ soil _ . He tried not to gag at the sight and crawled closer to get a better look. Two bloody roses sat on top of it, surrounded by a bunch of other petals. One was yellow and the other was red, the same shade of the red rose he gave to Ladybug. 

It felt like the universe was mocking him at this point.

Adrien stared down at the roses with an empty look in his eyes. He didn’t realize he was crying until his tears dropped down into the soil below him. 

“- and as your kwami, you need to understand I only want what’s best for you. We need to figure out what our next move is-”

“I’m getting the surgery.” 

Plagg shook his head, looking at the teen in shock. “That’s too risky! Like I said before, something could go wrong-”

“I don’t  _ care _ .”

The kwami was rendered speechless. 

“Any encounter I’ve had with love only ended up with me getting the short end of the stick. The world has been working against me ever since I was born. Hell, I can’t even remember the last time I got an actual  _ hug _ . I tried my best to be the perfect son, the perfect friend, the perfect  _ partner _ , and nothing I’ve done has been enough.  _ I’m  _ not enough, and I’m tired of being put down over and over again,” Adrien snapped, his voice hoarse. “I don’t want to feel anything anymore. I can’t do can’t keep doing this. I  _ can’t _ .”

His sobs echoed across the room, his knuckles white from how tightly he was gripping his hair. Plagg didn’t put up any further arguments. He hugged one of the teen’s fingers instead, trying his best to comfort him. 

Surprisingly, when Adrien approached his father with bloody roses held in his trembling hands, no questions were asked. 

* * *

Marinette was convinced she had the worst luck.

Not only did Chloe eavesdrop on the conversation she was having with Alya, but Adrien was right behind her. She didn’t blame him for running away at all. If the roles were reversed, she would’ve done the exact same thing. Still, she was worried. It’s been two weeks since she saw Adrien and no one has heard from him. All Marinette wanted was another chance to apologize and explain herself for what was said. Of course she dreamed about meeting Gabriel Agreste one day. As an aspiring fashion designer herself, it only made sense that she would want to meet one of the biggest names in the fashion industry. But she never intended on using Adrien. She genuinely wanted to be friends and she enjoyed being around him. And if anything, the real big secret she was keeping from him was about her crush. After how badly things between them ended the last time they saw each other, Marinette wished that was what he accidentally overheard instead. 

Her alarm went off, signaling it was time to go to school. She sighed and shut it off, grabbing her backpack and waving goodbye to her parents as she left. Before she could take out her phone to send Adrien another text message, a person crashed into her, sending them both tumbling to the ground. Marinette glared when she realized it was Alya who gave her a sheepish smile in return.

“Care to explain why you decided it would be a good idea to attack me this early in the morning?” she deadpanned. 

“I originally intended to just jump on you, if that makes you feel any better,” Alya replied in amusement.

Marinette rolled her eyes and stood up, holding out a hand to help her. “What has you so hyped up anyway?”

“Didn’t you get any of my messages? Adrien’s back! He’s with Nino right now-”

Alya squeaked in surprise when he was hauled off of the ground. Marinette ran as fast as her legs could carry her and dragged the other teen behind her. They made it to school in record time, both of them pausing at the entrance to catch their breaths. Alya spotted Nino and Adrien in the foyer and walked over to greet them. Marinette trailed behind her and took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart. This was her opportunity to try and make things right, and she refused to mess it up. Nino noticed her first and smiled, waving enthusiastically. She returned the smile, already starting to feel more confident.

That confidence quickly vanished as soon as her eyes met Adrien’s. 

Something was off. She knew he was upset. Before he disappeared, he was completely avoiding her. But right now, staring into his eyes, Marinette felt like she was looking into a pit of darkness. His face was completely devoid of any emotion. If she was being honest, it was terrifying. Her fears only grew worse when Adrien’s face completely changed when he looked back at Nino. The same soft smile that was usually on his face was back, his body posture relaxed. 

“I still have some homework I want to get done in the library before class starts. I’ll catch up with you guys later,” he informed.

Alya and Nino waved goodbye before starting their own conversation. As soon as Adrien faced Marinette again, his smile immediately dropped. Her words got caught in her throat when he walked towards her, a chill going down her spine from how robotic his movements looked. He didn’t even bother to acknowledge her and walked right past her without a second glance. She glanced over her shoulder to watch him go and frowned.

Her throat itched. 

After a couple of days passed, Marinette realized Adrien only acted cold towards her. He was even his normal self around Chloe, which bothered her more than it should’ve. His sudden change in behavior was jarring, but Marinette still owed him an apology. She was finally able to catch him during their free period, finding him in the courtyard sitting alone. Adrien didn’t say anything when she sat down, though he also didn’t tell her to leave, so Marinette took that as a small victory. 

“I’m probably the last person you want to talk to right now, but we need to talk,” she said softly. “What you heard-”

“I don’t care.”

Marinette froze. “Excuse me?”

“You apologizing doesn’t change anything. We don’t have to sit here and talk it out. You do your thing, and I’ll do mine. Just do me a favor and stay away from me. Being around you is a pain.”

And with that, Adrien got up and left, leaving the other teen shell-shocked. Her eyes were trained on the spot he was in, trying to process his words. Did she mess things up between them that badly? Marinette buried her face in her hands, muffling her sobs as tears rolled down her face. She felt a weird sensation in her throat and started to cough, hunching over when it started to get worse. 

Seeing the red rose petal on her lap was like a slap on the face. 

When another akuma appeared the next day, Marinette was honestly relieved. She didn’t want to bother Alya and Nino about what was going on. Chat Noir was her best bet at getting some guidance. He was already on the scene by the time she got there which was surprising. They took down the villain quickly, both of them unusually quiet. She knew things might be kind of awkward after the confession, but Chat Noir was acting like they were strangers. Marinette noticed he was about to leave and grabbed his arm, forcing him to face her. 

“Is everything okay?” she questioned. “If this is about the confession-”

“Don’t worry about it. That was stupid of me to do. We’re partners, nothing more. We team-up to take down the bad guys and that’s it.”

The grip she had on his arm tightened. “We’re not just partners Chat Noir, we’re friends. Aren’t we?”

“Not anymore.”

That’s when she saw it. The same cold expression she’s been getting used to. Marinette stumbled back, clutching her chest as her breathing picked up. “Adrien?”

“Like I said, we’re not friends. You leave me alone at school, and I’ll tolerate being around you when we have to save the city. Simple as that,” he replied, not even phased by her figuring out his identity. 

“What happened to you? Why are you acting like this all of a sudden? I understand that you’re upset, but this isn’t you!” Marinette snapped. 

Adrien stared blankly. “You’re right, it’s not. I was tired of being hurt, so I got rid of the pain. You were the cause of it. To put it bluntly: you don’t mean anything to me anymore. If I were you, I would stop trying to get me to forgive you. Nothing you do will change what I feel, which is nothing.”

Marinette fell to her knees, her vision blurring. She gasped for air, the vines wrapping around her throat getting tighter as Adrien continued to speak. 

“We’re better off apart anyway. We aren’t good for each other, we never were. This is for the best.”

He walked off, not bothering to look back. “Guess this is goodbye. Until the next akuma attacks at least.” 

Adrien was gone. In more ways than one. 

Marinette laid on the ground unmoving, her hand reached out in the direction he left in. Black and red roses bloomed from her throat, blood dripping down her face. 

Love has always been difficult for Adrien. And now, he would never have the chance to experience it ever again. 


End file.
